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Director: Prof Shane Norris

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Great Leap Forward: Entrepreneurial academics catalysing the 4th industrial revolution

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The age of theacademicentrepreneur

Universities have traditionally fulfilled teaching and research roles, butwith the advent of the fourth industrial revolution, this is changing.“Engaged universities” are solving commercial and social problems, whilefurthering the aims of entrepreneurship. Critically, academics inuniversities need to be nurtured to synthesise and integrate theirscientific and academic activities with market-related and social needs.

The age of the academic entrepreneur has arrived, and already theseentrepreneurs have saved lives and brought about much needed revenuefor struggling tertiary institutions. (Through Wits Health Consortium forexample, R2.5-billion income has been raised. The consortium’s entitieslike Wits Alive, have implemented life saving vaccine programmes. Thegreater the entrepreneurial orientation of universities, the better ablethey are to exploit opportunities to cover this funding deficit.)

The Wits Heath Consortium’s Great Leap Forward initiative looksspecifically at academic entrepreneurship. CEO Alf Farrell sees academicentrepreneurship as a “third mission” in which universities engage. But inorder for this to be scaleable and sustainable, it is important thatentrepreneurial thinking and practices are embedded in teaching,research and administration policies. It is important to identify thecharacteristics and behaviours of academics who are entrepreneuriallyinclined, and break down the barriers they may face in a university in adeveloping economy context. Entrepreneurship must be a key strategicpillar.

A scoping review, supported by the DSI-NRF Centre of Excellence inHuman Development (COE-Human), aimed to do exactly this. In thisreview and the 22 articles assessed, the most commonly mentionedacademic entrepreneurial characteristics included the need forachievement (hunger for success), the desire for independence(autonomy), an internal locus of control, innovation, creativity, futuristicthinking and self-esteem. Research Entrepreneurialism by academicswas tied to the following behaviours: the academic’s awareness oftechnology transfer, having collaborative networks with industry or ahybrid career and number of publications in the last five years.

For entrepreneurship to flourish, several enablers (drivers) such as donorsupport, strong national and international collaboration, strongregulatory systems, political and macroeconomic stability are necessary.

Several barriers such as fragmentation in the environment or economy,insufficient human resources and a poor entrepreneurial eco-systemhave been identified to impede academic entrepreneurial activity.

In conclusion, academic entrepreneurship and engaged academia, mustbe a central strategy in a university setting, in particular, for universitiesto support academics activiating their entrepreneurship.

Drivers of Entrepreneurial Behaviour (Enablers)

Attributes ofEntrepreneurial

Academics(Characteristics

EntrepreneurialAction

(Behaviour)

Inhibitors toEntrepreneurial

Action

EntrepreneurialIntention

Reference:The characteristics and behaviours of entrepreneurial universityacademics and the enablers or barriers they face in low and middle-income countries: a scoping review

Alfred Farrell1, Witness Mapanga2, Nombulelo Chitha1, James Ashton1,Maureen Joffe1,2,3

Affiliations:

GLF division of the Wits Health Consortium, Faculty of Health Sciences,University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa1

NCDR division of the Wits Health Consortium, Faculty of HealthSciences, University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa2

MRC/Wits Developmental Pathways to Health Research Unit Departmentof Paediatrics, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Witwatersrand,Johannesburg, South Africa3